State-of-the-art care for individuals with movement disorders
Neurosurgeon Gregory Davis, MD, has been providing the only deep brain stimulation (DBS) services in the Lehigh Valley to individuals with movement disorders since he joined Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) in August 2022. “DBS technologies are hard to come by nationwide, so we’re fortunate to have them here,” Dr. Davis says. “Restoring mobility improves patients’ quality of life significantly.”
Dr. Davis treats people with essential tremor, Parkinson’s disease and primary dystonia who experience mostly dysfunctional movement symptoms that no longer respond to medications. Additionally, Dr. Davis provides DBS as an adjunct therapy to medications and surgery for individuals with epilepsy.
“Tremor can be a symptom of a variety of neurologic disorders, including essential tremor, which is not a life-limiting illness,” Dr. Davis says. “About 1 in 3 patients with tremor stop their medications because their tremor does not respond. DBS may be a good option for them.”
Parkinson’s disease is more complicated because it’s progressive and affects the whole brain, Dr. Davis says. “The best candidates with Parkinson’s disease are patients with primary motor symptoms who are losing their response to levodopa over time, or who have unwanted side effects. Non-motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease such as depression, dementia and sleep disorder typically do not respond to DBS therapy.”
Although DBS is not yet an approved indication for primary dystonia, Dr. Davis obtained a humanitarian device exemption from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for LVHN patients.
The LVHN DBS program uses the latest technologies from leading manufacturers. For example, remote programming provides direct communication between a person’s device at home and a tablet in the clinic, allowing the neurologist to adjust settings to manage small side effects without individuals needing to come in for a visit.
“Today, smaller implants with longer-lasting batteries mean that we can implant a single pulse generator on one side rather than two, one on each side, so patients need only one battery change instead of two,” Dr. Davis says.
For procedures, Dr. Davis uses a 3D frame that attaches to the skull, allowing people to move freely and get comfortable during awake surgeries. “This technology is much easier and a lot less scary for patients than traditional stereotactic frames that immobilize them to the table,” he says.
Dr. Davis sees patients at Lehigh Valley Hospital– Cedar Crest as part of the Hoffman Family Deep Brain Stimulation Program, which includes LVHN’s team of movement disorder neurologists. People receiving DBS require several visits, from evaluation for surgery to initializing programming and troubleshooting side effects. “Each patient has different needs and responds differently,” Dr. Davis says. “I’m happy to discuss DBS with referrals.”
